🎉KPOP (Broadway, 2022)

KPOP became the first Broadway musical to center a Korean story, written by Jason Kim with music and lyrics by Helen Park and Max Vernon. The show sought to portray the complex world behind the glittering image of K-pop idols, exploring themes of identity, cultural pressure, and globalization.

After an initial Off-Broadway run in 2017 at Ars Nova (presented in a more immersive format), the musical was restructured and premiered on Broadway at Circle in the Square Theatre on November 27, 2022. Despite anticipation, it closed just two weeks later on December 11, following 17 previews and 44 performances in total.

Though critically mixed, the show marked a significant milestone: Helen Park became the first Asian female composer to have a musical on Broadway. The production was also notable for its cast of Korean and Korean-American actors, including Luna (of f(x)), Kevin Woo, and Min from Miss A.

NBC News noted that despite the early closure, the show represented “a fire of real change” on Broadway. It highlighted both the promise and challenge of introducing culturally specific stories to a mainstream American audience.

🎭 Reflection

While the show incorporated Korean language, cast, and aesthetics, the narrative felt disconnected from the reality of the K-pop industry. Rather than exploring the intense, hierarchical, and highly commercialized world of idol training — which in Korea is often compared to military academies or elite sports programs — the plot offered a more generic tale of artistic ambition and backstage conflict.

For those familiar with either K-pop or Korean musical theater, the story may have felt surface-level and emotionally ungrounded. Without music powerful enough to transcend this gap, KPOP struggled to resonate with either its intended fans or Broadway’s traditional theatergoers.